New Communist Party of Britain

Joint Statement of Communist and Workers' Parties

Solidarity with the Palestinian People

The International Meeting on "The Palestinian Problem and the Solidarity of the Left to the Struggle of the Heroic People of Palestine" organised on 25-26 February, 2011, in Nicosia, Cyprus by AKEL, with the participation of the Communist and Left parties and liberation organizations listed below, condemns the continuous crimes committed against the Palestinian people, demands the immediate end of the Israeli occupation of Palestine and calls for the recognition of the Palestinian state on the borders of June 4th 1967.

Talks between Palestine and Israel are in a complete deadlock due to the Israeli intransigent policy aiming to perpetuate the occupation and to destroy any possibility for the establishment of an independent, sovereign, viable Palestinian state. Israeli aggressive and intransigent policy has been tolerated and supported by the United States and by the complicity of EU and in particular by a number of EU member-states and institutions. The new NATO dogma, adopted in Lisbon, constitutes upgrading of the alliance of aggressiveness; hence it becomes even more dangerous for the peoples in the region and the world.

Forty four years after the occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, Israel, violating international law, pursues unabatedly its expansionist policies continuing the building of settlements, colonizing East Jerusalem and the West Bank, evicting Palestinians, demolishing Palestinian houses, stealing away the land, water and resources that belong to the Palestinian people. A policy reminiscent of ethnic cleansing. Almost seven years after the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice declared that the construction by Israel of the wall of shame to be contrary to International Law, Israel continues to fortify the wall tearing apart the Palestinian land and society, leaving the Palestinian towns and villages without land and water, dividing communities, separating the farmers from their land, the patients from the hospitals, and the schoolchildren from their schools. Two years after the Israeli war on Gaza in December 2008 that resulted in the death of over 1,350 citizens wounded thousands of innocent civilians including women, children and elderly, destroyed homes, properties and infrastructure that still lay in ruins, the humanitarian tragedy remains. The residents of Gaza are still deprived of the most basic goods and services. The Israeli attack on Gaza is in reality an aggression against the entire Palestinian people.

Almost five years after the siege of Gaza, and despite the slight slackening of it, more than one million Palestinians continue to live in conditions of an open air prison. The daily attacks by the Israeli occupation army against the unarmed Palestinian population defending its land and right to freedom and statehood cause daily victims that constitute a constant bleeding and war crimes mainly silenced by the international press.

In view of the above, the representatives of the participating Parties and Organisations consider that these policies and facts close all doors and opportunities in front of a just and comprehensive solution of the Palestinian problem and in the Middle East in general.

Based on the above, the signatories wish to declare the following:

(1) We reaffirm our support for and solidarity with the Palestinian people in their struggle to regain their legitimate and inalienable national rights, including the right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent and sovereign state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with Al-Quds (East Jerusalem) as its capital, as well as the right of return for all Palestinian refugees in accordance with U.N. Resolution 194;

(2) We demand the immediate end of the Israeli occupation of all Palestinian and Arab lands, including Syrian Golan heights and the remaining Lebanon Shebaa Farms, that are illegally under the control of Israel since 1967; we call the international community to proceed with the recognition of an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with the implementation of UN resolutions;

(3) We condemn the racist character of the Zionist movement and its plans and atrocities against the Palestinian people and we express our full support to the right of the Palestinians in resistance against the occupation;

(4) We condemn the Israeli intransigent policy vis-á-vis the talks and continual creation of faits accomplis mainly through the settlement policy that resulted to a deadlock for which Israel is fully responsible;

(5) We condemn the support of imperialist forces towards Israel that encourages the continuation and escalation of its criminal policies. Using the veto right in the security council of the U.N by USA concerning the Israeli settlements, is a recent example of this support by imperialist forces to Israel; We also condemn the political forces that are keeping equal distances between the victim and the victimizer, by accepting or even supporting the aggressive policy of Israel.

(6) We demand the immediate full lifting of the siege of Gaza, the re-opening of borders, the opening of the Rafah crossing by Egypt and the rapid reconstruction of all that was damaged or destroyed by this unjustifiable aggression and hold Israel accountable for all the damages; the Goldstone report and recommendations that considers Israel responsible for war crimes and possible crimes against humanity, must be implemented and Israel?s impunity should be stopped; the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem are part of the future Palestinian state and any division between them would render a Palestinian state non-viable and is unacceptable.

(7) We strongly condemn the perpetuated construction of the racist wall as well as of the colonial settlements in the occupied West Bank which violate all relevant UN resolutions and constitute a flagrant violation of International Law. We demand the immediate removal of the wall and all the settlements.

(8) We demand the immediate release from custody of all the freedom prisoners in Israeli detention, including women, children, elderly and elected representatives.

(9) We extend our solidarity to the forces in Israeli society resisting and denouncing the criminal Israeli policies against the Palestinians and against democracy

(10) We urge all sections of Palestinian national movement to advance the national dialog and to work seriously and in a responsible manner toward ending the internal split and re-establishing Palestinian national unity. This process should be aiming at strengthening the role of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) as the legitimate and sole recognized representative of the Palestinian people and also at reforming the role and status of the PLO, on democratic bases, with an open door to all those Palestinian forces or organizations desiring to join it. In this respect, we welcome the announcement of Presidential, legislative and local elections ahead of the possible declaration of Palestinian state

(11) We declare our decisiveness to be a vital part of the international campaign to support the goal of international recognition of the Palestinian state. In the above framework, until September 2011 we shall proceed with the following concrete initiatives:

(a) To carry out an international campaign for raising signatures of support to the aim of international recognition of the Palestinian state within the 1967 borders;

(b) After coordination with the GUE-NGL group, to organize a meeting in the European Parliament in order to raise the issue of international recognition of the Palestinian state;

(c) To organize an international visit of solidarity to West Bank, in which the main goal will also be the effort for international recognition of the Palestinian state;

(d) To undertake several other initiatives, on the national or regional levels, by individual parties within the above political framework.